Immunochemistry business will achieve significant expansion.

Roche is expanding its immunochemistry business through a $600-million acquisition of BioVeris. This transaction comes less than a week after the company reported plans to take over 454 Life Sciences for $154.9 million and two days after the $56.5-million buy out of THP.


Roche will pay $21.50 per BioVeris share. This marks a 58% increase from the company’s closing price of $13.60. BioVeris opened trading today at $20.66.


Roche Diagnostics expects to expand from the human diagnostics field into new market segments, such as life science research, life science development, patient self testing, veterinary testing, drug discovery, drug development, and clinical trials. It will own the complete patent estate of the electrochemiluminescence (ECL) technology deployed in its Elecsys product line.


“ECL is a highly innovative technology,” states Severin Schwan, CEO, Roche Diagnostics. “In comparison with other detection technologies, ECL offers distinct advantages, such as enhanced sensitivity, short incubation times, and broad measuring ranges. This acquisition ensures that Roche will be able to provide unrestricted access to all customers and therefore represents a significant growth opportunity for our immunochemistry business.”


Roche expects to close the transaction during the third quarter of 2007. It has already secured 20% of BioVeris shares through Samuel J. Wohlstadter, CEO. Additionally, two newly formed entities established by Wohlstadter will purchase from BioVeris rights to certain intellectual property and related assets associated with the company’s vaccines research and a nonexclusive limited license to use the ECL technology.

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